Major Additions - vBMS : vBulletin Mail System

vBulletin Mail System

Finally, for vBulletin 3.6, there is a port from filburt1's original hack. For those of you who aren't aware, he essentially declared it open source, and it's been a bit of a wait for someone to fix it up... I've wanted it for my site, too, so I finally sat down and just did it.

What is this?
The vBulletin Mail System is a way to give your users webmail access from your site. They can have a name@yourwebsite.com address, send and receive emails and attachments, etc. Options such as mailbox quotas, limits on numbers/types of attachments, a message trailer ("Free mail at yourwebsite.com!") at the end of each message, etc. are all available as well.

Please note: this is a pre-final version. As far as I have seen, it is working so far for me, but I have not tested it completely and thoroughly and it's very likely there'll be a number of bugs popping up. However, I have successfully been able to install this on a clean board, exchange emails regularly (including attachments), go through all the basic options/etc. without any errors popping up, so it should be fine. Still, make sure you back up your database before installing this, just due to the nature of its "beta"-ness.

To install: upload all files from the "upload" directory to your server in the proper directories. Then, navigate to admincp/vbms_install.php on your server and run the installer. It will make several template additions. If your navbar or header templates hav been modified, it will not be able to do it automatically, and you'll have to add these edits yourself.

In template navbar, find:

<td class="vbmenu_control"><a href="usercp.php$session[sessionurl_q]">$vbphrase[user_cp]</a></td>

Add after:

			<if condition="$show['popups']">
				<td class="vbmenu_control" id="navbar_vbms">
					<a href="vbms.php$session[sessionurl_q]">$vbphrase[email]</a>
			
					<if condition="$vbms_newmessages['newcount'] > 0">
						<span style="font-weight: normal; padding: 1px 1px 1px 2px; margin: 0px 3px 0px 2px; border: 1px inset" class="alt1">
							<phrase 1="$vbms_newmessages[newcount]">$vbphrase[x_new]</phrase>
						</span>
					</if>
				
					<script type="text/javascript">
						<!--
							vbmenu_register("navbar_vbms");
						// -->
					</script>
				</td>
			<else />
				<td class="vbmenu_control" id="navbar_vbms">
					<a href="vbms.php$session[sessionurl_q]">$vbphrase[email]</a>
				
					<if condition="$vbms_newmessages['newcount'] > 0">
						<span style="font-weight: normal; padding: 1px 1px 1px 2px; margin: 0px 3px 0px 2px; border: 1px inset" class="alt1">
							<phrase 1="$vbms_newmessages[newcount]">$vbphrase[x_new]</phrase>
						</span>
					</if>
				</td>
			</if>

Find:

<!-- / header quick search form -->
	</if>

	<if condition="$show['member']">

Add after:

		<div class="vbmenu_popup" id="navbar_vbms_menu" style="display: none">
			<table cellpadding="4" cellspacing="1" border="0">
				<tr><td class="thead">vBulletin Mail System</td></tr>
				<tr><td class="vbmenu_option"><a href="vbms.php?$session[sessionurl]">$vbphrase[navbar_inbox]</a></td></tr>
				<tr><td class="vbmenu_option"><a href="vbms_new.php?$session[sessionurl]">$vbphrase[navbar_write_message]</a></td></tr>
				<tr><td class="vbmenu_option"><a href="vbms_ab.php?$session[sessionurl]">$vbphrase[navbar_address_book]</a></td></tr>
				<tr><td class="vbmenu_option"><a href="vbms_folders.php?$session[sessionurl]">$vbphrase[navbar_folders]</a></td></tr>
				<tr><td class="vbmenu_option"><a href="vbms_filters.php?$session[sessionurl]">$vbphrase[navbar_filters]</a></td></tr>
				<tr><td class="vbmenu_option"><a href="vbms_options.php?$session[sessionurl]">$vbphrase[navbar_options]</a></td></tr>
				<tr><td class="vbmenu_option"><a href="faq.php?$session[sessionurl]faq=faq_vbms">$vbphrase[navbar_help]</a></td></tr>
			</table>
		</div>

In your ACP, there should be a new set of options in a "vBulletin Mail System" category. That set of options is your main set of management stuff, and is pretty straightforward.

Feel free to post with any bugs or questions you find, etc. I'm trying to get this working again thoroughly, for all of us.

FAQ

• Is POP support available for my users?
  No, this is similar to a webmail system.
• What is a catch-all email address, and how do I set it up?
  A catch-all address is an email address that any mail sent to your server that isn't picked up by another account will go to. For example, if someone sends an email to randomgibberish@yoursite.com and you do not have a "randomgibberish" account defined, it would forward to your catch-all account that you have set up, such as all@yoursite.com.
• Can I run this if my server doesn't let me have a catch-all mail account?
  Yes, but it's not recommended. As has been suggested by a few members, you can set up one mail account to the be "catch-all" and have vBMS connect to that, then set up mail accounts for each member who wants one and have it forward to the catch-all. All this has to be set up manually with your web host, and takes a great deal of willpower and availability from the website administrator, and is thus not recommended.
• I'm receiving the following error:
  

  Fatal error: Call to undefined function: imap_open()...

  If you're getting an error similar to this, you do not have IMAP functionality available in PHP. Find your php.ini file on your server (usually /usr/local/lib/php.ini on Linux, C:\Windows\php.ini on Windows), and find the extensions section. Uncomment the line ";extension=php_imap.dll" (that is, remove the semicolon at the beginning) and restart your web server. If you don't have access to your web server to do this, contact your web host about installing IMAP support for PHP. If they won't do it, then this hack is not for you.
• I can't connect to the mail server, with this error:
  

  Warning: imap_open() [function.imap-open]: Couldn't open stream {localhost:110/pop3}INBOX in /includes/vbms_class_installer.php on line 791

  First, make sure that your port number and server information are right. Some mail servers are on non-default ports (this is common), and some you may have to connect to a different host besides localhost (this is very rare). Also, try using the "Force no-TLS connection" option in the vBMS Options in the ACP.
• I can connect to the server just fine, but it won't get any email!
  Check the "Mail checking logs" in your ACP (under the vBulletin Mail System area). If there are no logs, then the cronjob probably isn't running. If there are logs, see if there are any errors in there. If it's checking the mail account fine and simply says there are no messages, check with a webmail to see if the catch-all account is even receiving mails. If the webmail shows that the account has mail stuck in it and vBMS isn't picking them up, but vBMS is saying it's checking the account alright and finding 0 messages, then you're likely connecting to the wrong account. By doing these steps, you should at least be able to figure out where the problem is occurring.

Install clicks, donations and HotM nominations are always welcome.

[bashy]

Hi

It wont let me install it, stops at 7% saying Step 1 of 13: Testing Settings?

If i refresh the browser it says

You did not complete all of the required settings: "POP3 Server Username" was not completed. Please go back and try again

I know for a fact that the email is correct it is the main email account where the settings for it cannot be modified, such as the password and son it....

[raiderlax]

Wow this looks awesome, lets make this thing bug free, also does it work with VBSEO.

[encryption]

I cant get this to install for squat..... I've tried catchall addresses, created new addresses and set them as catchall in CPanel and install, try local host, mail.mysite.com, nothing works, I CONSISTENTLY get the error

Installation failed while "Testing Settings": vBMS couldn't connect to the mail server using the settings you provided. Please go back and verify their accuracy. If you are not sure of the values to use, consult your host.

Details:

Warning: imap_open() [function.imap-open]: Couldn't open stream \{localhost:110/pop3}INBOX in /includes/vbms_class_installer.php on line 791

[Krofh]

Originally Posted by whiteeagle0

i don't run my own server thats the prob

my web hosts does but he's not online right now

is there a way to do it manully?

Nope, not unless you have full access to the server like that.

Originally Posted by whiteeagle0

edit: can you make it look my like the usercp for the emails??? i want it too look like hotmails but also the usercp?

That's what templates are for. If you want to customize it, feel free to do so yourself; I have not the time to make fun styles for this.

Originally Posted by whiteeagle0

and can we remove the copyright or can i buy a copyright removal?

According to filburt1 when he made this open-source:

You can:
* Modify vBMS to do whatever you like (excluding changing copyright notices), and then claim the changes as your own.
* Remove mentions of vBMS, the "vBulletin Mail System", or other branding.
You cannot:
* Modify vBMS to do whatever you like, and then claim the entire product as your own.
* Remove mentions of vBMS, the "vBulletin Mail System", or other branding, and replace them with others that imply you exclusively developed the product.

So basically, yes, you can remove the copyright, but you can't replace it with one of your own.

Originally Posted by bashy

It wont let me install it, stops at 7% saying Step 1 of 13: Testing Settings?
If i refresh the browser it says

You did not complete all of the required settings: "POP3 Server Username" was not completed. Please go back and try again

Then don't refresh the browser while installing it. It's not going to remember the details you entered if that's what you do. Does it give you a specific error when it gets stuck at 7%?

Originally Posted by TTG

Thanks for the reply .. still no go and I've tested web mail from host cpanel and catch all email does work.
Mail checking logs shows nothing .. "Nothing to do"
Anyone else got this to receive ? I'd be interested to know how you got it to work.

Sounds like the cron job's not executing properly... can you go into your scheduled task manager and make sure it's there and working? I think it should be called "vbmsvbms_checkmailphp". Try doing a test run of it from there and see if there's some sort of problem.

Originally Posted by raiderlax

Wow this looks awesome, lets make this thing bug free, also does it work with VBSEO.

Haven't tried, but I don't think it would much matter anyways; the mail isn't available to guests, so I don't think search engines would be picking up on it.

Originally Posted by encryption

I cant get this to install for squat..... I've tried catchall addresses, created new addresses and set them as catchall in CPanel and install, try local host, mail.mysite.com, nothing works, I CONSISTENTLY get the error

That error you give means it's not properly connecting to the mail server. Are you sure you have a POP3 mail server on your web host, and is it on localhost at port 110? You should check with your web host about that.

I'll try and get to the usergroup issue as soon as I can; it might be a few days though.

[bashy]

There is no error at at all, just hangs at 7% step 10 of 13: Testing Setteings

like i said, if i then refresh it tells me,

You did not complete all of the required settings: "POP3 Server Username" was not completed. Please go back and try again

My server is definately set for pop3 as i am using it with outlook 2007
The catch all email is 100% correct, although the email addrees is not the login its only the1st part of the address, but i have tried it with the whole email address and the 1st part and still nothing , I have now had the installer running for 5 mins and its still at 7% as i am typing this post!

still 7% lol

[abramelin]

tell me how the users signs an email like user@mysite.com with this mod?

[ringoflight]

For some strange reason, I seem to be receiving all the sent and received emails, rather than them going in the users Inbox. Any help?

[imranbaig]

very nice this is it, I was looking for this one glad found it.
Thanks man.

[Robru]

The install stops at 7% saying Step 1 of 13: Testing Settings? with the following error:

Fatal error: Call to undefined function imap_open() in ....\project\includes\vbms_class_installer.php on line 790

[TTG]

Originally Posted by Krofh

Sounds like the cron job's not executing properly... can you go into your scheduled task manager and make sure it's there and working? I think it should be called "vbmsvbms_checkmailphp". Try doing a test run of it from there and see if there's some sort of problem.

Produces :-